Crew: After winter, boats return to Carnegie

The women’s win against No. 4 Brown — in which Princeton’s first varsity eight bested its Ivy League rival by six seconds — allowed No. 3 Princeton to retain the Class of 1987 Trophy for the fifth straight year. No. 9 Michigan rowed past the finish line of Lake Carnegie’s Bud Smith Race Course more than five seconds before the Tigers clocked in at 6:39.5, indicating how much effort Princeton must put in over the next few weeks to regain its championship form.

“A loss and a win are both productive and tell you something about your crew, but a loss shows you something has got to change,” senior captain and 1V rower Kelly Pierce said.

This defeat marked the first time in the last 28 races that the top varsity eight has lost.

“The loss of the Class of 2011 was a big blow to our team,” Pierce said. “They were a small class, but they provided leadership across all boats and all teams, and their speed and expertise are sorely missed. We are a bit of a younger crew and a more technically challenged crew this year.”

The second varsity eight race ended similarly, as Michigan outrowed the Tigers by 2.5 seconds and Princeton in turn bested the Bears by over four seconds. Princeton came out on top in both the varsity four and the third varsity eight races but lost to Michigan in the second varsity four contest by over half a minute. The Tigers did not lose to Brown in any of the Bears’ four races. In the three losses to Michigan, Princeton saw the Wolverines building an early lead, which they never surrendered.

“The way Michigan jumped off to a lead in the very beginning of the 2V and 1V races — I think that shows us that it’s imperative we continue to work on our fitness and strength,” Pierce said.

There are no races this upcoming weekend, and Princeton looks to capitalize on the extra practice time to focus on and improve its race starts.

“Our speed at base is the meat of the race,” junior 1V rower Heidi Robbins added.

Being the defending NCAA and Ivy League first varsity eight champions does not alter the Tigers’ game plan for this season.

“We can’t rest on the laurels of the past, but we can definitely use them for inspiration and motivation,” Robbins said.

“To have come away victorious in 2011 suggests that we might be in a good starting place in 2012 to attempt to win some championships, but that pressure to win is one we would place on ourselves regardless,” Pierce added.

While the 1V team saw four seniors graduate last spring, the 2V and varsity four combined to lose only one senior.

Get the best of the ‘Prince’ delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe now »

“The group is young, but it is deep,” Pierce said.

Next up for Princeton is The Class of 1975 Cup Regatta on April 7 when it races against Harvard, Cornell and Columbia on Lake Carnegie.

“The group of girls we have this year is amazing,” junior Gabby Cole said. “We have girls from every class stepping up, coming together and getting the job done. Although we don’t always get a lot of recognition, these girls are some of the most hardworking, dedicated, tenacious people I know, and it’s an honor to be able to call them my teammates. There’s a lot of talent and potential here this year, and I’m excited about the realization of both in the coming months.”

“We’ve put in a tremendous amount of work, and now racing is the fun part,” senior Lila Flavin said.

The men’s lightweight team opened its season strongly this past weekend on the Potomac River, defeating Navy in the varsity eight race in 5:57.2, over five seconds faster than the Midshipmen, thereby winning the Joseph Murtaugh Cup for the fourth straight year.

In the second varsity eight contest, the Tigers came up short by one second. The second freshman and the third varsity eight Princeton teams also lost.

“It’s always nice to start the season with a win, but we need to keep getting better every single day,” said junior 1V rower Tyler Nase, who set a new Crash-P record this preseason in the men’s lightweight category. “Our race against Navy showed us we have some serious speed. It was good to see that all the things we have been working on are really starting to show.”

Both 1V and first freshman races followed a similar script, with the Tigers and the Midshipmen closely battling for position in the first thousand meters and then Princeton taking over in the second half, stretching its lead and holding on for the victory.

“It is always tricky to go down to Annapolis and race the really fierce Navy crews, so coming back with a win is a solid start to the season,” said senior captain and 1V rower Gianthomas Volpe. “In the first varsity race, Navy put up a really good fight and the race stayed very close for the first 1000 meters. We were able to move away in the second half, so we will definitely try to build off of that part of the race.”

The lightweight Tigers entered this season very differently from last season, when Princeton was the defending back-to-back national champion. Last season the Tigers did not finish in the top three at either the Eastern Sprints or the Intercollegiate Rowing Association Regatta.

“I think about last year’s result just about everyday,” Nase said. “The way the season ended last year has given our team a lot of motivation over the past six months but also put pressure on our team. It showed us the bar has to be raised. From top to bottom, I’d say our team has met that challenge.”

“I think the biggest difference is that as a team we don’t have a big target on our backs anymore,” Volpe said. “Last year, whenever a team raced us it was a chance to take down the national champions, but this year we get to be in the position of trying to take down the top team, which takes some pressure off of us. That being said, we are still holding ourselves to the same standards we have in the past and would love to have that target on our backs next year.”

The first freshman squad emerged victorious in its first ever spring season race in 6:04.1, almost six seconds faster than Navy and less than two seconds slower than Navy’s 1V squad.

“It’s really exciting to see our new freshman class go out and win their first race,” Nase said. “They will be a huge factor on this team for the next four years … All around, guys are really excited to start racing. We have an extremely long training period. It’s nice to be able to go out and see how much all the hard work has paid off.”

The Princeton lightweights return to Lake Carnegie this weekend to host Columbia and Georgetown in the Fosburgh Cup.

“I am extremely excited for this season,” Volpe said. “After last year’s disappointment, this year gives all us seniors the chance to make things right before graduating.”